6 Daily Health Mistakes that will Eventually End your Web Design Career

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I am quite sure it is safe to say that you, who are staring at a screen right now, are an awesome web designer or at least trying to do your best to become one.

Well, nothing wrong with that at all, in fact if I were standing next to you right now, I would definitely tap you on the shoulder and give you a cookie for all the effort you put into it.

But even though it all sounds just wonderful, I am here to tell you that there is a big, big problem. There is something massively wrong with the way people these days (yes, including you!) maintain the most important machine they own – their body and its health.

It’s not just about getting physical activity in your life,… Just because you’re doing 30 minutes of physical activity, what about the other 23.5 hours.

– Dr Peter T Katzmarzyk

Today you should feel very fortunate, because I myself am so, so passionate about having a healthy and active lifestyle that I decided to give you a little insight into very basic, yet important steps to avoid these every day health mistakes we make.

Changing Your Mindset Will Save Your Career

A few years ago I changed the way I was making my living, something that did not make me smile at all. Unfortunately these changes required me to spend a lot of my time in front of a computer screen.

After all of that I was left with back ache, neck ache, pain in my wrists, damaged eyesight and even my nerves suffered, not mentioning another unpleasant addition to my body – a very sexy pot belly (yeah right, dream on about a six pack).

What was going on in my head? Complaining? Moaning? Or maybe even quitting my job?

None of it! I just had to face the problem itself – it was my own fault. My mindset was totally wrong.

I changed my mindset about health. I took it so serious that now I can proudly say that even the smallest health issue, caused by having to stare at a computer screen and sit on an office chair all day is gone!

1. Stress From… Well… Doing Nothing

Now, in all fairness guys, do you really consider your lifestyle active and healthy enough just by clicking a computer mouse or tapping on your keyboard?

Well, I really hope not, instead I really hope you realize yourself when you need that extra fitness class, workout session or a quick sprint down the street.

Even if you are totally aware of the lack of fitness in your life, nothing will change on its own. You are the only one who can make any changes in your life.

While you are still only thinking about doing something to add that important fitness activity level to your life, rather than actually taking the first step towards it, something known as stress and depression will sneak into your life sooner rather than later.

And do not be surprised when stress and depression develop even further. You can end up with a bunch of very unnecessary health problems, like heart disease, ulcers, anxiety, etc.

Only One Step to Become Relaxed and Full of Energy

And of course by now you understand that the first important step to take is exercising. But please remember that it does not have to be all or nothing.

What I mean is do not mess it all up by forcing yourself to run a marathon or start an Olympic training program tomorrow after spending years without exercising at all. It will put you off it all together.

Start by doing anything from walking, jogging, taking a dog for a walk, doing yoga or cycling, to something more advanced like sprinting or rock climbing. That should keep stress, depression and anxiety miles away from you.

2. Always Be Nice to Your Forearms

Have you ever heard of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome? It sounds very nasty, you would say, and to be honest with you, it is. This syndrome affect everyone from office workers to someone like… yes, you guessed it – web designers and developers.

Typical symptoms are soreness, tingling, numbness and itching. It is mainly caused by too much typing.

It is Not Hard to Avoid

Try to keep your wrists slightly curved and off the bottom frame of the keyboard. Obviously you want to feel relaxed when working, but do not slouch in your chair, sit with your feet flat on the floor.

Exactly like your body needs some exercise and stretching now and again, make sure you move your fingers, wrists and your hands, as well as stretch their tendons.

Another tip I can give you is to tuck in your elbows next to your side. By doing that you will provide your fingers with a more consistent platform and your wrists will not be twisted.

3. Sleep Like a Baby, I Mean It

￼￼Take Away Good Quality Sleep and I Guarantee You Will Burn Out. Photo by Minoru Nitta

Imagine having a candle on your desk right now. When you light this candle up it surely looks nice and can be very useful. But as you understand, after only a few hours all you would have left on your desk would be a nice pile of candle wax.

It would just literally burn out. This may come to you as a surprise, but you can burn out as fast as that candle, if not even faster in some cases. Take away good quality sleep from your body and I guarantee you will burn out one day.

In the past I have caught myself face down on my keyboard having a few brief dreams. Have you ever caught yourself bobbing your head or not paying attention? Maybe just wanting to have some cheeky shuteye in the office, otherwise known as power nap.

Believe me, there is no chance of you becoming an awesome web designer if your Photoshop stays open for 8 hours, but all you can manage to get done in that space of time is open the colour palette. And that is exactly what would happen, because your body will crave some good quality sleep, so you’ll constantly have episodes of micro-sleeps.

Just Kick Your Snoring Spouse Out of Bed

To make sure you do not turn into a bobble-head all I can suggest is to consider your environment. If it really is your spouse who snores, that disrupts your beautiful night sleep, well, just practice some good kicking moves and one morning your spouse will “accidentally” be found on the floor (you did not see that coming, did you?).

Ok, ok just because I am one harsh and nasty human being, it does not mean you have to be one too. More likely having a chat with your spouse about it would solve the problem much faster and with a much better ending.

Every adult needs approximately seven to eight hours of good quality night sleep. Other disruptions around you that may affect your time of sweet dreams include room temperature and air quality, noises made by babes, noisy streets or even your neighbours making love.

4. Damaged Eyesight is Not Fun

Damaged eyesight is a serious problem. In many cases there can be something more complicated behind it.

One of the most common conditions is asthenopia or often simply called eye strain. This condition itself might not always be as noticeable as other conditions, because it manifests itself through nonspecific symptoms as fatigue, pain in, or around, the eyes, blurred vision, headaches, and occasional double vision.

It is caused by some of the everyday tasks we do. When we have to concentrate on something visually intense, like staring at a computer screen all day long, or even using an old CRT type of computer monitor for a little while, can cause very similar eye problems.

No Eyes, No Web Design. Look After Them

Now I can give you some tips that will help you look after your eyes. First of all, eye exams are there for a reason, right? So having a routine comprehensive eye exam would be a great start.

Having eye exams done now and again will prevent or even treat computer vision problems. I would recommend having an eye exam at least once a year.

Like exercising your body, you can (you have to) exercise your eyes too. After constantly focusing on your screen, look away from your computer for at least 20 seconds, out the window or look at the picture on the wall.

Do not just start using your mobile phone instead (it is another screen at the end of the day). And make sure you do this exercise at least every 20 minutes.

Even blinking more often can help a lot, as it moistens your eyes to prevent dryness and irritation. And last, but not least – use appropriate lighting. Candle light would definitely not be the best idea.

5. Take Even the Smallest Back Pain Seriously

Hey, what if I asked you now to count how many hours today you already have spent sitting in that irresistibly comfortable (I know, I know, not always so comfy) office chair of yours?

Listen carefully now, your back will never forgive you for all those prolonged hours sitting in an office chair. First thing you will notice will be low back pain followed by neckaches and more serious spinal problems.

Just to let you know, sitting in general is a very static position, which increases stress in the back and neck, as well as adds large amounts of pressure to the back muscles and spinal discs.

So here you go – all the big “rocket science” of back pain explained to you in one little paragraph.

Use Your Office Chair Properly to Avoid Back Pain

If possible, always establish your desired desk height. I understand that not everyone has one of those expensive adjustable office desks. At least, follow my guidelines for office chair setup and that would be better than nothing.

Sit as close as possible to your desk, having your upper arms positioned in parallel with your spine. Keep your elbows at a 90 degree angle and let your hands rest on your keyboard or desktop.

You can check if the height of your office chair is adjusted correctly. If you are able to do it with ease then the height is just right.

Your chair should have a cushion, which when your bottom is pressed against the back of your chair causes your lower back to arch. Always check you are not slouching forwards or slumping.

6. Computers can be a Real Headache

As essential as they are, computer screens are also behind many headaches. The more we use them, the more headaches we get.

These headaches can be caused by the heater, air conditioning, eye strain, general stress from your job, or emissions from the fax machine and photocopier.

Beat Your Headache

Being stressed is definitely a massive headache producer. If it really is stress, which causes your discomfort, you can try to destress yourself.

If you are interested in meditation it would definitely make a difference and your headaches would start to disappear. But there are also more simple and basic steps to destress yourself.

Try to relax by thinking about something good that recently happened to you. Or even something completely opposite. Try deep breathing, at the same time “switching your mind off,” just thinking about nothing at all.

And by the way, very often bad neck causes major headaches too. So gently stretching it for a couple of minutes will loosen up your neck.

Being dehydrated will not do you any favours either. Drinking plenty of water throughout the day will rehydrate you. Remember to drink at least 1.2 litres of water a day.

So The Conclusion Is…

In these days, when nearly anything we do requires computers, unfortunately we cannot afford to just throw them out in order to save our health.

And not only that, most of us now spend our whole working day sitting down – which could be killing us.

The Human Body was Not Designed to be Motionless for Hours

All the muscles in our body are designed to be active. They will certainly waste away if we go long periods without using them.

Now when you have something to think about regards your body and its health, more likely you will finally understand how raising this issue is and will do something about it.

And do not be ashamed to discuss this matter with your friends and colleagues. We can always achieve more when making changes together.

Now I Want to Hear from You (yes, I care)

How active and healthy would you say your lifestyle is?

And if the situation is not as good as you would like it to be, are you doing something to fix it? Share your experience.

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Comments

Honestly I think I am not as active or healthy as I should be. I use to very active. I have just become lazy. I have been working to change that. Everything mentioned will help a lot of people. Great work!

Mr James Richman ur tips r so cool…. me to havin wrist pain 4 long tim…if i work hard even though i’m havin wrist pain mean, finally it will get to my below back neck … I meet good Doctors but tey all r givin is just pain killer & anti biotic medicine … once i cam 2 knw tat medicines r pain killer i stopped havin tat & try 2 find the actual problem … the problem was my chair, mouse & keyboard as wel… 4 me microsoft mouse is very good & it took away my 90% of pain from my wrist while workin with mouse pad…

I used to get wrist pain when my hands were higher than the elbows, but after installing a keyboard tray, it just became better. Also you find specific keyboards/mice designed very aesthetically and like you said could and most probably would be the ultimate cure.

tnks 2 James & Bravo 4 replyin 2 my comment. Sorry 4 late reply since i already replied but i dont no wer my reply comment had done. Til nw i cant totally get rid frm my wrist pain(100%). The thing is i can work thrice then before. But i love web technologies. I’ll work until i can work well without heavy problem if ter means i’ll left the job & ten i try 2 start my own business .. tat wat I’m think right now.. if u wish u can giv me som tips 2 me…

i exactly dont no wat is happening inside of my hand.. but i knw wen i’ll get pain..like1. Workin wit computer2. Keepin hand’s on rough surface (i can surel say if i keep my hands on smother surface i wont get pain in my wrist)

mostly i like 2 start business wic s not related 2 computers … If i have no options means i’ll struck wit computer business (web related) …Most probably i wont choose 2nd 1 bcs in India we need 2 start IT related business means v need 2 start it in A-Grade cities(or at least in B-grade cities but ex-poser is poor) then onl v’ll get enough ex-poser but living cost and environment is so bad in A grade cities in India. But most of best IT peoples wil get job in Developed countries. They’ll earn until tey r satisfied afterwards tey’ll start business in India wit tat money (me 2 preferring tat kind of way onl Mr. James )

This is one Brilliant article! I do get drowsy whilst working at the computer lately (as a web developer), although I use a bicycle almost daily even if its for a short round. Thanks for the article! Going to take a few points off them.

I faced a lot of back pain and it became bad when it travelled down to my left leg. Finally had to visit doctor.I am still taking medicines and as per the advice doing relavent excercise and taking regular breaks.

Great stuff but want to add something about eyes. Studies have proven that we blink a lot less when working on the computer which you mentioned briefly but this really leads to dried out eyes causing many problems and regular eyedrops make it worse if there is preservative in them so my secret is single dose artificial tears. Such a huge difference, you wouldn’t believesee the following article about dry eyes and it gives more tips about positioning of screen etchttp://www.patient.co.uk/doctor/dry-eyes

a couple months but don’t feel I need them every day but some days I use them 2 or three times. I read part of what matters is the amount of moisture in the air so maybe a humidifier would help as well

Hey everyone, I am a web designer/developer and I have had 8 major back surgeries, always in pain which makes it hard to focus, sitting in a chair is almost impossible now. I also have middle back and lower back problems that cause extreme migrains everyday, so I have to have all the nerves in my neck burned every 8 months to keep most of them away. Web Design/ Web Developin was not the only thing that contributed to all my back related issues, and students getting their degrees really need to be aware as well. I went for a year with my back killing me thinking it was just a muscle ache, then on Friday night I could not sit, stand, walk, or anything it was excrutiating. If you are having constent pain in your lower back don’t wait, get it checked out and save yourself from all the pain you will encounter if you don’t. This is no pain like have screws put through your spine, let alone the time it takes to heal from that kind of surgery. I would to hate to see any other in the web community end up like me and always be in pain.

What an inspiring story this is.At the same time I feel very sorry for what you have had to go through.

But I’m very glad to hear that you haven’t given up on your dream to stay in web technology industry, instead You’ve taken it as a good lesson to understand and realize how serious this issue is in these days.

Alisa How do you manage to work with a computer in these days?Do You have to use some special chair or a swiss ball to take that pressure off your spine?

Thank you so much. It has been tough being a single mom with two young kids but they make me push forward and I am just so passionate about learning more and creating amazing designs. I do have a back support in my chair that helps me sit more upright, but it is difficult with all the issues in my lower back to sit upright. I take strong strong pain pills and muscle relaxers through out the day to handle sitting so long. And every doctor I see once a month always says to get up and move every 20 min in order to get pressure of your lower back. I am only 30 yrs old and I have to deal with this the rest of my life and of course it is going to get worse and worse. My first surgey was in 2005 and the next year a double fusion. Please protect your spine, once it goes bad there is no way to get back, pain management can only do so much and surgery is always a huge risk. I use to teach and compete in dance competitions ( Country & Western and West Coast Swing), played Volleyball through college, and was able to really play with my kids but now I can’t do any of those things. Web Design/ Development is the only passion I have left that I can really do. Please don’t end up like me, especially for all you young designers/developers.

Alisa,Sounds like you have been through really tough times.All the respect to you!

So what exactly are you doing now Alisa?

Are You freelancing then? Is there any chance you could share your website/portfolio with us to get to know You better?

Alisa I’m really interested in your case as a good example for everyone.Because you seem like a unique character after being able to keep your chin up and always finding a light at the end of the tunnel.

You are in my thoughts.I do not always sit up right (more like never) and I do have backpain. I am only 17 years old.I hope that you will work as an example and inspiration to me, and many others, so no one else has to go through the same as you.

Great article and I can relate a bit to your issue.People seem to forget these things, and all they want to do is do stuff.It’s great and all but health is one of those things that once you lose it, you may not get it back. It’s precious but taken for granted by most.I too, used to suffer from SEVERE back pains. I was way more fortunate than Allison, so I was able to rectify on time.I bought a chair that is worth $2000 that is specially designed for posture.There are three things which you shouldn’t be cheap about if you are into Web design1) Your chair.2) Your desk.3) Your setup.

My desk was also VERY expensive. But in the end, I balance the comfort and preventing stuff like listed here.I also gained weight which I am now cutting back. I swim 1.5 miles three times a week and jog about 5, all on the same day.

It’s worth it. Yeah you could be doing more stuff like learning, etc but I see myself as a pencil. If I don’t care of myself physically, I lose the sharpness to write. Resting and exercise are the best ways to do it. I think a lot about stuff, related to work whilst I do it, and when I come back, I feel better, ready to give another knack at it.

The price is way less now, which I assume either because there are newer models or because it’s old now. Who knows. I live in Costa Rica so yeah, the $2000 was pretty much what I paid for it back then (about 4 years ago)

I also found it here, and I am almost positive it’s this one. I could tell its this one by its weight (48lbs). I mean, it WEIGHS for being a chair. But the thing you will treasure the most is that metal plate on the back. You can (no joke) sit for hours and hours and your back won’t feel a thing.

I was diagnosed with hernia on my L4 disc about 4 years ago. It was in Feb of 2009. And the thing wit this share it’s that it is impossible to have a bad posture while sitting down. The great thing about the chair is not so much sitting on it, it’s when you stand up after long hours of being seated where everything feels normal when you stand up and you don’t feel those terrible cramps on your back or you feel that your back is going to give in.

Hey James, thanks for bringing this up. These are things I already knew/was afraid of. It feels better coming from someone else. It’s clear to me that I’m a prime candidate for burn out. My folks tell me all this all the time. But the best way to get my attention is … a webpage :). All in all I just need to get off my butt. Thanks man!

How stupid I was thinking that I’d get more done by sitting in front of a screen those extra 5 hours.It turned out to make me less productive and made me hate what I was doing at that time because of the burn out.

Jose, can you actually already feel some symptoms that would warn you of approaching burn out, or is it only your mates that suggest you to fake a break now and again?

I agree with your stress ideas but computers were meant to make us free from those hours and lives. Live on the beach and work from your pc as I am doing now. Internet is brilliant I swim and exersice every day it’s not so tough.

I Agree with you James, well it really need to have a extra fitness class like workout or exercise. Everyday like us, we are working in front of our computer 4 to 8 hours a day and one of the common issue is stress.

You are absolutely right James that Computers can be a Real Headache! so to avoid headache sometimes we should aware working straight in our computers an hours, sometimes rest our eyes in 20 to 30 minutes.

I think it is cause of stress James. What I did is to rest and sleep for an hours. yes, I did go to gym 2 to 3 times week and it can also help to reduce stress from work. Because that time I was so loaded in my work so I feel stress.

Stress is actually good for You in little doses, it’s what we call healthy stress, but obviously just like everything that’s not in moderation in our lives can harm as, stress can too damage our health.

And I think doing a gym workout 2 to 3 times a week is one of the best choices You could make, because as You probably know exercise releases endorphins, which is bloody good for You.

Have You also considered changing your eating habits to improve your creativity and capability of producing more great work?

Just a little whisper: My next article is going to be exactly about that :)

Your post is really interesting and it also happened to our life especially if you are working at home or a web designer. As a online marketing, health issues sometimes happened to me and we should always take care of our health.

One thing that I like about your post is about Always Be Nice to Your Forearms, because I never heard about Tunnel Syndrome and so nice that I read you post and I really learned a lot. Thanks anyway for sharing such a very informative and interesting post James!

You have a fantastic post James and I am glad that I visit your page. I totally Agree About your post and this is really helps me a lot. Working in front in computer sometimes make you stress or sometime health issues but it depends on how you handle your lifestyle. This post is really help us a lot.

You are absolutely right, and i agree with you 1000% .. We should also care about health, i know its very difficult to follow all the steps, but they all are very important ofcourse. Btw i am also one of those who can just think to care about health, but its very difficult for me to manage time.

I thought about this this weekend when last Friday i felt sick while i was heading home. Then It came to my mind all the hours I am on the computer working and how I’ve been neglecting my wrist, head and back pains!

Starting this week I’m making some lifestyle changes… I’m only 21!!!! grrr

Good article, I had quite some health issues lately because of long working hours and the long commute to and from work everyday that had me waking up at 7 and coming home at 8 in the evening, involving 3 hours on a uncomfortable irritating bus, so a quite stressful situation

And combine it with not-so-great co-workers/boss and a typical fastfood web developer diet, it developed into quite serious health issues.

At a new job now, which is 1.5km away from my home I can walk to work in a couple minutes. And thinking of bringing running gear so I can run back (with a de-tour since 1.5km is not so much). And better co-workers and bosses as well! :)

I’m little concerned still about my eye-sight. I had an infection in my eye and it lasted very long, it was probably not helping my recovery to keep working behind a computer screen all day long but it is also a bit weird to explain to your boss you can’t look at a screen for a while.. What would you do in this situation?I stopped using my contact lenses now and started using my old glasses again to give my eyes bit of a rest.

As mentioned before, very nice to read an article not specifically related to coding but about ‘our’ lifestyles! Would like to see more articles like this!

René good to hear your story how You have successfully managed to turn your lifestyle upside down.

Regards your issue with an infection in your eye I would definitely ask Your family doctor to prescribe any eye drops to speed up recovery at the same time keeping the infected eye closed and covered with any sort of medical patch.

And I’m really excited about the continued feedback I get from my readers on how much they’re enjoying reading articles with a different voice tone.

I am really a technology guy, passionately believing in digital culture, but always keeping in mind, that after all we are humans not hardware.

Therefore I like to write about technology, relating everyday human topics to digital culture.

I definitely promise many more article like this to come :)

p.s. I can whisper to You that quite soon there’s an article coming written by me on how to boost your Web Designer Creativity By Spending Some Time In Your Kitchen.

Great article! I have always been fit and active, but after trying to change career earlier this year I have spent many hours sat in front of this screen. I can identify already with many of the problems you mentioned (especially the stress and back ache) and reading this has helped me to realise I need to take action now.

I can’t seem to find away out of sitting in front of the computer, I took up web design as a way of getting out of working on an IT help desk. Things are probably worse as a web designer I find spending Sundays in a garage building a penny farthing helps :-)

Try to think about it all as a part of your personal development to become a better web designer.

For example, I tend to go for half an hour and walk around different shops to see what sort of colours and style of banners and adverts on windows they use to grab passers attention and what is their reaction.

Then I come back to my office to think how I could apply these offline examples to my online projects.

So half an hour every now again away from that screen will only benefit you.

Maybe it because I have kids at home who I chase around all day but I think I get my exercise chasing them around. Does that count?

All kidding aside I think this is a serious problem that many designers and developers tend to ignore. We all think we are superman in our home offices. I know when I first started my company I would spend all day in front of the PC then eat and go back to work till 3 in the morning. I did it for a month then my wife sat me down and had the talk. She basically told me I was rushing myself to the grave and missing out on my family.

I had to agree with her and I changed my lifestyle. I now work in spurts and in between working I spend time with the family, networking, and hiking through the woods. I happen to live in an area with hundreds of trails that lead to the great lakes. So I always feel rewarded seeing such beauty.

My suggestion to all of you is that life is short and you’re missing out. Take some time out of the day to be you and not a person in front of a screen.

Ricardo, funny enough, but actually even chasing your kids around few times a day will make You sweat (especially if the kids are one of those naughty ones.)

And you are definitely right about missing out on good quality time with family, but also it will always increase your creativity levels and give You more inspiration if You have a break now and again by doing something completely different.

Many of us forget that just because we spend, for instance 15 hours working, it doesn’t mean, that every each of those hours are productive. So after all, we lose either way.

I definitely recommend having 6 hours of hard, concentrated and productive work, rather than 12 hours of work, where half of that time is wasted.

James, your point about breaks helping your creativity is a good one. It’s all too easy, as I’m sure we all are aware, to just plough on through hours in front of the screen when we have some deadline or another, or just lots to get done, but as you point out, too many hours at a time actually lowers productivity.

I always find, weather I’m sat behind the computer, or doing something in the physical world (I also work with wood building various things) that following a break from whatever I’m doing, I always come back to the task at hand with a fresh mind and new ideas that will never come without the break. It helps the mind to see things afresh again which is vital to avoid getting stuck inside the box, so to speak.